U.S. wind group: No evidence to support for Sen. Lasee's anti-wind claims

Thursday, July 26, 2012

From a commentary in the Fond du Lac Reporter by John Anderson, director of siting policy for the American Wind Energy Association:

Wisconsin State Sen. Frank Lasee’s recent statements regarding the potential health effects of wind turbines are not supported by numerous government and peer-reviewed studies in the U.S., Canada, Australia and the U.K.

The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection and Massachusetts Department of Public Health recently published the “Wind Turbine Health Impact Study: Report of Independent Expert Panel.” Most notably, the authors of this report concluded:

• There is no evidence for a set of health effects from exposure to wind turbines that could be characterized as “Wind Turbine Syndrome.”

• Claims that infrasound from wind turbines directly impacts the vestibular system have not been demonstrated scientifically. Available evidence shows that the infrasound levels near wind turbines cannot impact the vestibular system.

• The strongest epidemiological study suggests that there is not an association between noise from wind turbines and measures of psychological distress or mental health.

• None of the limited epidemiological evidence reviewed suggests an association between noise from wind turbines and pain and stiffness, diabetes, high blood pressure, tinnitus, hearing impairment, cardiovascular disease, and headache/migraine.

• Scientific evidence suggests that shadow flicker does not pose a risk for eliciting seizures.